Hey guys, thanks in advance for all the help. I've been reading everything I can on this site the past few days, but its always more comforting to have a convo specifically geared around your personal needs haha. Especially with this being my first build.

Per the guidelines (sorry if I skipped any):I'm looking to build a mid level HTPC with crisp 1080 output. It will be used for streaming (Netflix, Hulu, MLB.tv, some online streams, etc), TV (with a cablecard tuner), stored content (my media that's already digital and also using Handbrake), and Spotify. I may also dabble in some light gaming (I use PS3 for heavy gaming). I prefer Newegg and MicroCenter, and live near a MicroCenter In Atlanta. My budget is around $500-$700. I tend to spend a few extra dollars for marginal upgrades, but I don't want to overpay or overkill. Here's what I'm thinking so far:

Hi, I had a thread on this a little while ago. I basically built what was in my first post.

Based on the feedback I received the system that your planing is overkill. My i3-3225 is probably overkill if an HTPC system.

You need to decide how much gaming you plan to do. If you're going to do light gaming (as you said in you original post) I'd base the system on AMD's Trinity. I have posted a build using Trinity that thread as well. I didn't go with a Trinity based system because I didn't plan to game on my system and Intel CPUs use much less power under load.

Another alternative would be to get a discrete graphics card for an Intel build. For 1080p the HD 7770 is pretty good (and cheap).

CPU -- Intel i5-3570k, or if that is overkill for my needs, then the i3-3225.

The Core i5-3570K is overkill for an HTPC, but it is the best choice for gaming. Having it in your HTPC and not needing its quad-core performance won't hurt anything but your pocketbook. It's power usage isn't much if it is lightly loaded. The Core i3 would still be more than sufficient for the HTPC application.

That one won't work for your dual gaming/DVR application because a tiny Mini-ITX motherboard has only one PCIe slot. To allow installation of both a graphics card and a Cablecard tuner, you'll need Mini-DTX or DTX (which are rare and have two slots) or Micro-ATX (which is very common and has four slots). Look at a micro-ATX motherboard like the Asus P8Z77-M Pro, ASRock Z77 Pro4-M or Asus P8H77-M/CSM.

Toss a Radeon HD7770 in there and you've got a competent gaming PC that runs quietly and sips power.

A 90 to 256 GB SSD is a good size for your operating system and most-used programs. However, since you're going to use this as a DVR, that 1.0 TB hard-drive has got to go. Even if you put nothing but recorded TV on it, the bigger the better. The four tuners in your Cablecard device can easily fill up a 2.0 TB hard-drive in less than a week. Depending on your living room environment, you may want to avoid the big Seagate 7200 rpm drives. The head seek/park screech can be annoying enough in a quiet room in my gaming PC.

I don't think overclocking and HTPC go hand-in-hand. An unlocked processor isn't really necessary. Although at Microcenter, in the i5 arena, the 3570K costs the same as the 3450 after the $40 discount. I would jump at the i3-3225 for $120 at Microcenter so you can take advantage of the $40 CPU+mobo discount. Being an HTPC, I don't forsee a heavy amount of multitasking taking place. Even then, the i3 puts up some respectable performance numbers. The only problem, as mentioned before, is that the HD4000 graphics are outclassed by AMD Trinity IGP. If you go Intel, a discrete GPU like the 7770 for $90 after MIR (good deal by the way) would be recommended.

My A8-5600K plays DiRT Showdown at 1080p and high settings w/ AA in the 40+ fps range. Microcenter also offers $40 off FM2 mobos with purchase of an A10-5800K. IMO, that's the way to go. No need for a graphics card means you might be able to go mITX like the MSI FM2-A85IA-E53 for $84 + A10-5800K for $120 - $40 discount = $164. If you go with an AMD APU, make sure you get 1866MHz RAM though.

I recently built an HTPC to do the same kinds of stuff you are looking to do. My forum post can be found here.

I wanted to build a system that used a little less power than average since my HTPC is on all the time.

The i3-3225 is a pretty good choice for an HTPC - low power draw and decent integrated graphics. I've been able to play Battlefield 3 at 720p with low graphics settings at around 30fps. Obviously not ideal, but it gives you an idea of what the HD 4000 graphics are capable of. I don't know anything about AMD APUs (their CPU+GPU combos) other than what I've read online. They seem to do much better with gaming, but less good with power draw. Between the 3225 and 3570k, the biggest differences will be power draw for an HTPC. I don't think you'll notice any other difference. Not worth the extra cash in a non-gaming build IMO.

I used the Silverstone GD05B case and I like it. Unless you are really great with cabling, I'd recommend a modular power supply since there isn't a ton of space to hide unused cables. Its decently quiet, but you can hear it going in my living room when the TV is not on. My system stays int he 30c temperature range with the stock intel heatsink and only one fan running in the case.

For a motherboard, unless you plan to use a separate sound card, be sure your MoBo has an optical out if you need that connection for your home theater. I neglected that feature in my build so I decided to get a separate USB sound card solution, the Creative Soundblaster X-Fi since I plan using it with both my gaming build and HTPC.

You don't list an OS in your build. You will probably want Windows 7 since it comes with Windows Media Center built in. You will need Media Center (not just Media Player) for your Ceton Infinitv4. You may be able to get Media Center for free with Windows 8, otherwise I think MS was charging $20 for it.

For RAM, that G.skill ram in my build works great and its only 1.25v, so it has lower power draw.

I'd definitely go with a 2TB or larger drive for your main DVR. You'll find yourself scouring the tv listings for good movies to record and store. A 2 hour HD movie can be anywhere from 10-18gbs, so that space starts to go fast. I use a 1TB drive for my OS, games and storage and then the 2TB drive for my DVR and for storing system backups. I really don't see a need for an SSD unless you plan on doing more than watching TV, web browsing and some occasional light gaming. With my build I can easily record 4 shows and watch a 5th without my computer skipping a beat. I'm not sure a 7200RPM drive is needed, but that's what I got.

Unless you plan on burning lots of Blu-Rays, just skip the BD drive. I have one in my build because I wanted to use it for watching movies and its a pain, and more expensive since you need a program to watch the Blu-rays with. Most of those programs cost between $50-$100. Your PS3 will play blu-rays much better.

The Ceton cablecard tuner is a great choice. Mine runs flawlessly. Highly recommended!

First of all, thanks for all the feedback so quickly! It was nice to come home from work and see so many detailed responses

For a motherboard, unless you plan to use a separate sound card, be sure your MoBo has an optical out if you need that connection for your home theater.

I just use HDMI to connect to my surround sound and then from my surround sound to my tv, so this isn't a requirement.

Unless you plan on burning lots of Blu-Rays, just skip the BD drive. I have one in my build because I wanted to use it for watching movies and its a pain, and more expensive since you need a program to watch the Blu-rays with. Most of those programs cost between $50-$100. Your PS3 will play blu-rays much better.

Unfortunately, my PS3 won't play blu-rays anymore yet it will read a game on a Blu-ray disc....that's another problem though haha. So I will need the Blu-ray player. As far as burning blu-rays, I've always wondered if it keeps the same high quality?

I like the Silverstone GDO5B case a lot bc it will fit nicely in my entertainment center (especially when I ditch the Comcast box!). I like the Fractal Define Mini case bc it is supposed to be really quiet and looks very easy to manage cables and maybe upgrade later. That's honestly my toughest decision haha.

I really don't see a need for an SSD unless you plan on doing more than watching TV, web browsing and some occasional light gaming.

Most articles I've read rave about the SSD being a must-have, is that primarily for more gaming-centered builds or for an added boost overall? I would certainly consider reallocating that cost somewhere else (bigger HDD probably) but I don't want to sacrifice performance if it makes a difference.

As for gaming, the amount I would use it for this does not justify much additional spending. And the gaming I would do would certainly not be classified as demanding.

Look at a micro-ATX motherboard like the Asus P8Z77-M Pro, ASRock Z77 Pro4-M or Asus P8H77-M/CSM.

I was looking at the ASRock Z77 Pro4-M, any expanded thoughts on that board? Also, I've read mixed reviews on Asus motherboards, some people have said they've run into problems with them. Any similar experiences in here?

I realize I probably don't need the i5 3570k, but its just so tempting at that price. Will the i3 3225 run into any issues streaming in high quality without the discrete GPU? And I don't really know much about AMD, so I've just never really considered going that route. I guess I'm just used to the Intel brand, illogical bias there haha.

I'm off to read the other threads linked in your responses, and thanks again for the continued help!

First of all, thanks for all the feedback so quickly! It was nice to come home from work and see so many detailed responses No problem, glad to help!

For a motherboard, unless you plan to use a separate sound card, be sure your MoBo has an optical out if you need that connection for your home theater.

I just use HDMI to connect to my surround sound and then from my surround sound to my tv, so this isn't a requirement. Nice. My home theater doesn't have HDMI.

Unless you plan on burning lots of Blu-Rays, just skip the BD drive. I have one in my build because I wanted to use it for watching movies and its a pain, and more expensive since you need a program to watch the Blu-rays with. Most of those programs cost between $50-$100. Your PS3 will play blu-rays much better.

Unfortunately, my PS3 won't play blu-rays anymore yet it will read a game on a Blu-ray disc....that's another problem though haha. So I will need the Blu-ray player. As far as burning blu-rays, I've always wondered if it keeps the same high quality? Budget $100 for a good bluray playback program. PowerDVD gets some recommendations around here, just be sure to get the one with BD support. FYI Newegg has an Asus BD burner for $56 after rebate as a daily deal. See here

I like the Silverstone GDO5B case a lot bc it will fit nicely in my entertainment center (especially when I ditch the Comcast box!). I like the Fractal Define Mini case bc it is supposed to be really quiet and looks very easy to manage cables and maybe upgrade later. That's honestly my toughest decision haha. Cable Management was a pain in the silverstone . A modular power supply will help a lot.

I really don't see a need for an SSD unless you plan on doing more than watching TV, web browsing and some occasional light gaming.

Most articles I've read rave about the SSD being a must-have, is that primarily for more gaming-centered builds or for an added boost overall? I would certainly consider reallocating that cost somewhere else (bigger HDD probably) but I don't want to sacrifice performance if it makes a difference. I've never felt that an ssd would help my htpc enough to be worth it. My htpc boots fast and runs very well with old school mechanical drives. I would recommend making a 150gb or so partition on the drive that will have your OS on it since that will help response time a lot. The technique is called `` short stroking'' (insert juvenile comment here) if you want to read up on it. If it were me, I'd spend that ssd money on something else, you definitely won't miss it for DVR work, email and video watching.

As for gaming, the amount I would use it for this does not justify much additional spending. And the gaming I would do would certainly not be classified as demanding.

Look at a micro-ATX motherboard like the Asus P8Z77-M Pro, ASRock Z77 Pro4-M or Asus P8H77-M/CSM.

I was looking at the ASRock Z77 Pro4-M, any expanded thoughts on that board? Also, I've read mixed reviews on Asus motherboards, some people have said they've run into problems with them. Any similar experiences in here?

I realize I probably don't need the i5 3570k, but its just so tempting at that price. Will the i3 3225 run into any issues streaming in high quality without the discrete GPU? And I don't really know much about AMD, so I've just never really considered going that route. I guess I'm just used to the Intel brand, illogical bias there haha. No issues with my 3225 doing anything short of high end gaming since I don't have a discrete GPU. I record 4 shows at a time while watching a 5th without a hitch. I've also done video encoding/decoding, streamed netflix and played minesweeper all at once without issues. Save the cash bro... And put it towards a gaming PC ;p

I'm off to read the other threads linked in your responses, and thanks again for the continued help!

I see no need to buy a blu ray burner for the HTPC. With an HTPC, evertying is going to be recorded/stored on the hdd, how often do you see yourself needing to burn your recorded shows on disc media anyway. You can easily use an external hdd or flash drive for that. Just get a stand-alone blu ray player and bypass all the software playback headaches. The only reason to need a blu ray drive would be to rip your blu ray movie collection to your HTPC for use in a program like XBMC. Otherwise, if you want an optical drive, just get a DVD burner for $20.

[edit] I suggested a stand-alone blu ray player because of the many complaints I've heard about trying to get blu ray playback to work on HTPCs. I personally already had a stand-alone player before I updated my HTPC for 1080p content. (just some background to my recommendations)

Last edited by DPete27 on Wed Mar 13, 2013 12:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.

The full version of PowerDVD 12 Ultra is $65 from Cyberlink. The OEM version included with Blu-ray burners like this one may only allow stereo sound output rather than full 5.1 or 7.1 surround. PowerDVD intregrates into Windows Media Center with your Windows 8, Windows 7 or Windows Vista HTPC.

I see no need to buy a blu ray burner for the HTPC. With an HTPC, evertying is going to be recorded/stored on the hdd, how often do you see yourself needing to burn your recorded shows on disc media anyway. You can easily use an external hdd or flash drive for that. Just get a stand-alone blu ray player and bypass all the software playback headaches. The only reason to need a blu ray drive would be to rip your blu ray movie collection to your HTPC for use in a program like XBMC. Otherwise, if you want an optical drive, just get a DVD burner for $20.

[edit] I suggested a stand-alone blu ray player because of the many complaints I've heard about trying to get blu ray playback to work on HTPCs. I personally already had a stand-alone player before I updated my HTPC for 1080p content. (just some background to my recommendations)

Well my problem is that I own a considerable amount of blu-rays and my PS3 won't play them, and I don't have another player. I could buy a stand-alone Blu-ray player but I like the idea of consolidating that into the htpc. I would very rarely have the need to burn to a disc, but I would like a way to play them. As a side thought, if I bought a Blu-ray drive but not a program to play them properly, I could still rip them and play them through WMC correct? About how much space does an average Blu-ray movie take when ripped?

Poke around the threads related to HTPCs and you'll find plenty of carping about the difficulties in getting consistent BR playback on an HTPC. Unless you're planning to invest in some extra software and time to rip your collection to the HTPC, a set-top BR Player is generally the most reliable choice.

I see no need to buy a blu ray burner for the HTPC. With an HTPC, evertying is going to be recorded/stored on the hdd, how often do you see yourself needing to burn your recorded shows on disc media anyway. You can easily use an external hdd or flash drive for that. Just get a stand-alone blu ray player and bypass all the software playback headaches. The only reason to need a blu ray drive would be to rip your blu ray movie collection to your HTPC for use in a program like XBMC. Otherwise, if you want an optical drive, just get a DVD burner for $20.

[edit] I suggested a stand-alone blu ray player because of the many complaints I've heard about trying to get blu ray playback to work on HTPCs. I personally already had a stand-alone player before I updated my HTPC for 1080p content. (just some background to my recommendations)

Well my problem is that I own a considerable amount of blu-rays and my PS3 won't play them, and I don't have another player. I could buy a stand-alone Blu-ray player but I like the idea of consolidating that into the htpc. I would very rarely have the need to burn to a disc, but I would like a way to play them. As a side thought, if I bought a Blu-ray drive but not a program to play them properly, I could still rip them and play them through WMC correct? About how much space does an average Blu-ray movie take when ripped?

I think one of my friends settled on about 5-8GB per full-disc encode with mild compression losses, and I've seen a couple BR compressions down to about double the size of native DVD that still looked noticably better. Obviously that's not archival quality, but since you can then put your source disc into storage and not worry about yanking it in and out of a player drawer several times, it's going to last longer anyway.

I think one of my friends settled on about 5-8GB per full-disc encode with mild compression losses, and I've seen a couple BR compressions down to about double the size of native DVD that still looked noticably better. Obviously that's not archival quality, but since you can then put your source disc into storage and not worry about yanking it in and out of a player drawer several times, it's going to last longer anyway.

The big savings come at dropping audio... drop other languages. drop DTS Master or Dolby Master (7.1 formats) down to 5.1.Also dropping special features is huge too.

Much more discussion around doing this gets into talk about breaking DRM.

Update: I bought the 3TB Seagate Barracuda and found a restocked Fractal Define Mini on ebay for $50 including shipping that I couldn't pass up. Total spent so far = $190. I'm gonna go with the i3-3225 and ASRock Z77 for another $190 once I get a chance to visit MicroCenter. As for Ram, is there any difference between a single 8gb stick and 2x4gb sticks? Then its just PSU, Ceton cablecard tuner, and maybe bluray drive..I'm budgeting around $65 for RAM and i have no idea what a decent PSU costs, and around $65 for a BD if I go that route. So should come in around $600 before the Ceton.

Your Ivy Bridge processor has two memory channels. If you only populate one channel, you will have half as much memory bandwidth. This will slightly reduce performance... UNLESS you use the integrated graphics, in which case it will be crippling.

Update: I bought the 3TB Seagate Barracuda and found a restocked Fractal Define Mini on ebay for $50 including shipping that I couldn't pass up. Total spent so far = $190. I'm gonna go with the i3-3225 and ASRock Z77 for another $190 once I get a chance to visit MicroCenter. As for Ram, is there any difference between a single 8gb stick and 2x4gb sticks? Then its just PSU, Ceton cablecard tuner, and maybe bluray drive..I'm budgeting around $65 for RAM and i have no idea what a decent PSU costs, and around $65 for a BD if I go that route. So should come in around $600 before the Ceton.

Concerning the PSU, how much power do I need for a build like this?

Good find on the Fractal case. It's really compact and should be very quiet.

As for the PSU, definitely check out the ones JustAnEngineer linked. I still highly recommend a modular power supply since it will make cable management so much easier without having to hide all the unused cables. I just completed my first build with a modular PSU and it was so easy compared to my older HTPC build with a non-modular supply. One of the Seasonic PSUs in the 300-400 watt range should do the trick. Prices are actually sub-$60 if you have Shoprunner - if you don't definitely sign up for their free trial, then cancel it before you get charged. They will probably send you an offer for another free 3 month trial that you can use.

Definitely also go with a dual channel memory kit as everyone has said. 8gb should be fine for your HTPC.

Just a side thought -- if i want to get a SSD later is it difficult to transfer the OS from the HDD without screwing anything up?

You can do a google or bing search about that, but from what I know, it is difficult and can actually mess things up. Its probably easier to just do a fresh install on the SSD.

When you get the SSD, you will also want to do some searches on how to optimize it for a long life. Generally it seems like you want to move certain folders (My Documents, etc) onto a mechanical HDD and turn off some windows features that really aren't needed with an SSD.

This Samsung 120GB SSD is a daily deal for $100 from $130. Good enough deal to jump on it? I was considering getting a cheaper smaller SSD to just use for that caching SRT type trick but I may go this route and just go over my budget..here's to hoping march madness brings me some extra spending money!

This Samsung 120GB SSD is a daily deal for $100 from $130. Good enough deal to jump on it? I was considering getting a cheaper smaller SSD to just use for that caching SRT type trick but I may go this route and just go over my budget..here's to hoping march madness brings me some extra spending money!

That's a pretty great deal on that SSD. There is no doubt, SSD makes things go lightning fast.

I'd guess the question is, how important is your budget? You won't have to eat only Ramen noodles for a week (or month?) to make up the difference hopefully. If your budget isn't something your are 100% bound to, then go for it if you really want it. I normally set a budget and then go over it since Imy budgets aren't based on tight finances, but some kind of desire to just not spend *too* much on something that is purely for entertainment.

I will note though, as I have before, that an SSD on an HTPC that you won't be doing much gaming on is a bit of overkill. Yeah, it will make things faster, but how important is the faster when its just doing HTPC stuff?

Since you are big on console gaming, I'd put that $100 away and save towards the sure to be very expensive PS4.

I will note though, as I have before, that an SSD on an HTPC that you won't be doing much gaming on is a bit of overkill. Yeah, it will make things faster, but how important is the faster when its just doing HTPC stuff?

I've found that the SSD makes a difference in areas where in an ideal world you wouldn't worry about it: Rebooting. Sure, I'd love to have a nice stable HTPC that never needs to reboot, but between the age of my HTPC, the years worth of Win7 updates and the poor implementation of hibernation... I find that I invariably need to reboot right before SWMBO comes downstairs to watch something. The Wife Acceptance Factor takes a huge hit if she ends up twiddling her thumbs for a couple minutes whilst your spiffy cool custom built HTPC restarts. The pressure to ditch it in favor of your cable company's DVR will eventually get to the annoyance level - regardless of any argument about monthly fees and lack of Netflix.

As an aside: A good Logitech Harmony remote is a godsend some days.

If there is one thing a remote-controlled, silent and unseeable surveillance/killing machine needs, it’s more whimsy. -- Marcus

I haven't had a single issue with BluRay discs any time recently. PowerDVD seems to have no issues now with my LG reader. I, however, do not rip on the same system as Cyberlink's stuff interacts with it and causes issues - at this point ripping BD is not much harder than ripping DVDs.

If you get a board that supports SRT, you only need a small 32 or 64GB SSD - it will in fact not work with a larger SSD (OK Some BIOSes will still let you USE 120GB and what not disks, but the SRT itself it limited to 64GB.) This is great combined with green disks like the WD Green 3TB.

Personally my setup is about like this:

Core i3-3225 CPUGIGABYTE GA-H77M-D3H MotherboardSamsung Low Profile Low Voltage 4GBx2 1600Mhz DDR3 RAM - You can get this from Amazon and it's good stuff - tiny and coolCrucial M4 120GB SSDNo Mechanical HDD as I have a NAS over Gigabit EthernetSeasonic SS-400FL2 PSU - This is a fanless crazy awesome PSU. It's amazing as it doesn't get very hot, hell less hot than my 520W in my gaming PC.hec 7K09BBA30FNRX Case - This is a steel case that's media component looking and honest is only like $50 - I really hate aluminum cases.LG BluRay Drive - As I said, I stopped having problem when I went to the LG+Cyberlink combo on PlaybackLenovo N5902 Wireless Keyboard/Trackball - You gotta have something to control a HTPC running Windows, and this is it.